The truth about was-prices

What our price tracking shows about the crossed-out number on the badge.

By the SaleDrop deals desk · Updated 18 Aug 2026

Every sale leans on one number: the crossed-out "was" price next to the new one. The bigger the gap, the better the deal looks. The problem is that nobody checks whether the item ever actually sold at that "was" price.

We do. For every deal we track, we keep the highest price we have ever recorded it at and the price it held for the longest stretch. That lets us measure the saving against what the item genuinely cost, not the figure printed on the badge.

The typical sale badge across the 6,639 deals we have tracked long enough to judge is 55% off. Measured against the price the item actually holds, the median real saving is just 0% (R0). The rest of that headline is worked out from a price we have not seen the item reach.

None of this means the deals are fake. Many are genuinely low. It means the badge percentage is the wrong thing to trust. About 84% of those deals carry a was-price higher than anything we have ever recorded the item selling for, and roughly 62% save you under 10% against the price the item normally holds, whatever the sticker says. The price history is what tells the two apart.

Clear examples right now

Each of these has a was-price well above the most we have ever seen it charged.

Real 33% off claimed 77% off Belt Detail Linen Shorts R299 usually R449 Woolworths Witchery

Real 37% off claimed 75% off Tempo Jewellery Silver Plated Blue Cubic Zirconia Barrel Bead R100 usually R159 American Swiss

Real 37% off claimed 75% off Tempo Jewellery Silver Plated Cubic Zirconia Barrel Bead R100 usually R159 American Swiss

Real 37% off claimed 75% off Tempo Jewellery Silver Plated Cubic Zirconia Barrel Bead R100 usually R159 Sterns

Real 37% off claimed 75% off Tempo Jewellery Silver Plated Blue Cubic Zirconia Barrel Bead R100 usually R159 Sterns

Real 32% off claimed 73% off Bermudas calatea - light pastel brown R158 usually R232 Superbalist ↓ dropped 18 Aug

Real 46% off claimed 78% off Mettalic checker board jeans - blue & grey R109 usually R200 Superbalist ↓ dropped 18 Aug

Real 31% off claimed 72% off Skirt sea - natural R139 usually R200 Superbalist ↓ dropped 18 Aug

What to do instead

Judge today's price against what the item has actually held, not the crossed-out was-price. Look at the lowest and usual price on our chart, then decide whether today's number is genuinely good. If we have not tracked an item for long, treat it with more caution, not less, because we cannot see what it cost before we started watching. There is more on our method on the how we verify a deal page.